ER Visit (level 5, high severity) at SIERRA VISTA HOSPITAL, INC.

1010 Murray Ave, San Luis Obispo, CA · Adventisthealth · · NPI 1639101116

Source: hospital's published price file ↗ · Published Jan 10, 2026 · Ingested Sep 16, 2026

$1,192.95

Cash price

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Discounted cash price

What a hospital charges a self-pay patient who pays directly, without going through insurance — usually well below the gross charge.

Example: A CT scan has a $3,200 gross charge but an $850 discounted cash price. Ask for it by name when scheduling — hospitals don't always advertise it up front.

Full explanation →

What you pay up front if you don't use insurance.

$13,255.00

Gross charge

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Gross charge (chargemaster price)

The hospital's full, undiscounted list price — pulled from its internal "chargemaster" price list. Almost no one actually pays this.

Example: A chest X-ray has a gross charge of $1,450. The same hospital's discounted cash price for the same X-ray is $180 — the gross charge mostly anchors negotiations, not what patients pay.

Full explanation →

The hospital's undiscounted list price — almost no one pays this.

$764.60 with CENCAL MCR ADV - ALL OTHER PLANS vs $17,231.50 with CCAH-CENTRL CA ALLINCE MCAL-ALL PLANS — same scan, same building. Share

Negotiated rates by payer
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Negotiated rate

The price a specific insurance plan agreed to pay the hospital for a service — it varies by insurer, and even by plan within the same insurer.

Example: The same knee MRI has a negotiated rate of $904 with one insurer's PPO plan and $1,509 with another's — identical hospital, identical scan.

Full explanation →

Payer
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Payer

The insurance company footing the bill — Aetna, UnitedHealthcare, Medicare, and so on.

Example: "Blue Cross Blue Shield" is the payer. Its negotiated rate for an MRI might be $904, while a different payer's negotiated rate for the same scan is $1,509.

Full explanation →
Plan
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Plan

The specific product an insurer sells — e.g. "Blue Cross PPO 500" — which sets your deductible, coinsurance and negotiated rates.

Example: Two people both insured by Aetna can owe very different amounts for the same MRI: $50 with an HMO plan's flat copay, or the full $1,200 toward a high-deductible PPO plan's unmet deductible.

Full explanation →
Negotiated rate vs. cash
CENCAL MCR ADV - ALL OTHER PLANS CENCAL MCR ADV - ALL OTHER PLANS $764.60 ↓ -36%
UHC MCR ADV UHC MCR ADV $764.60 ↓ -36%
AETNA MCR ADV AETNA MCR ADV $764.60 ↓ -36%
TRICARE BLUE SHIELD-ALL PLANS TRICARE BLUE SHIELD-ALL PLANS $764.60 ↓ -36%
CFMG-CA FORENSIC MED GRP OP/PROFEE ONLY-ALL PLANS CFMG-CA FORENSIC MED GRP OP/PROFEE ONLY-ALL PLANS $993.98 ↓ -17%
AH EMPLOYEE HEALTH PLAN - ALL PLANS AH EMPLOYEE HEALTH PLAN - ALL PLANS $1,376.28 ↑ +15%
HPN-HERITAGE PROV NTWRK-ALL PLANS HPN-HERITAGE PROV NTWRK-ALL PLANS $4,000.00 ↑ +235%
BLUE SHIELD EPN BLUE SHIELD EPN $5,195.96 ↑ +336%
BLUE SHIELD HMO/POS BLUE SHIELD HMO/POS $6,468.44 ↑ +442%
BLUE SHIELD EPO/PPO-ALL OTHER PLANS BLUE SHIELD EPO/PPO-ALL OTHER PLANS $7,131.19 ↑ +498%
AETNA - ALL OTHER PLANS AETNA - ALL OTHER PLANS $7,555.35 ↑ +533%
NBD-NTWRKS BY DESIGN EXCLUS-ALL OTHER PLANS NBD-NTWRKS BY DESIGN EXCLUS-ALL OTHER PLANS $7,632.00 ↑ +540%
NBD-NTWRKS BY DESIGN NON-EXCLUS NBD-NTWRKS BY DESIGN NON-EXCLUS $7,654.76 ↑ +542%
UHC HMO UHC HMO $10,894.00 ↑ +813%
UHC ALL PAYER - ALL OTHER PLANS UHC ALL PAYER - ALL OTHER PLANS $12,529.00 ↑ +950%
MEDI-CAL MEDI-CAL $13,255.00 ↑ +1011%
CENCAL MCAL CENCAL MCAL $15,110.70 ↑ +1167%
UHC PPO UHC PPO $15,659.00 ↑ +1213%
BLUE SHIELD PROMISE MCAL BLUE SHIELD PROMISE MCAL $15,932.51 ↑ +1236%
COALINGA-ALL PLANS COALINGA-ALL PLANS $17,231.50 ↑ +1344%
CCAH-CENTRL CA ALLINCE MCAL-ALL PLANS CCAH-CENTRL CA ALLINCE MCAL-ALL PLANS $17,231.50 ↑ +1344%

Visitor-reported prices

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ER Visit (level 5, high severity) at other California hospitals

Hospital City Cash price Negotiated range
French Hospital San Luis Obispo $1,459.03 $155.03 – $3,392.76
Fresno Medical Center FRESNO $4,220.16 not published
St. John's Camarillo Hospital Camarillo $2,060.79 $226.60 – $3,279.18
Antioch Medical Center ANTIOCH $4,220.16 not published
Redwood City Medical Center Redwood City $4,220.16 not published
Santa Clara Medical Center SANTA CLARA $4,220.16 not published
Baldwin Park Medical Center BALDWIN PARK $3,284.32 not published
Riverside Medical Center RIVERSIDE $3,284.32 not published

All California hospitals for this procedure →